


Birthday Bumps

by LMShnook



Series: Johnlock short stories [2]
Category: Sherlock (TV), Sherlock Holmes & Related Fandoms
Genre: Birthday Fluff, Eventual Johnlock, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, I don't really know where, Kissing, M/M, Stargazing, Takes place somewhere before Reichenbach
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-07-18
Updated: 2014-07-18
Packaged: 2018-02-09 10:08:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,049
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1978839
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LMShnook/pseuds/LMShnook
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sherlock has special plans for John's birthday.  But as everything begins to go awry, Sherlock finds John has plans for how he wants to spend his special day, too.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Birthday Bumps

**Author's Note:**

> This is a birthday gift for my friend who has yet to get an AO3 account (you know who you are, luv!). 
> 
> To my best friend, I hope you enjoy this fluffy blurb and have a fantastic day!
> 
> To any other readers, I hope you also enjoy it!

Sherlock thought throwing John a surprise party would be easy. Nowadays John was very often out of the flat, busy with the (in Sherlock’s opinion) absolutely mind-numbing task of tending to sick patients. Even if he did stay in the flat, he was not overly observant, especially when Sherlock was purposefully being rather secretive about the whole operation. He had the whole day planned out: John would leave early in the morning to go to work, which would give Sherlock (more likely Mrs. Hudson) ample time to decorate the flat. Sherlock would even bake John’s favourite cake by himself. The actual party would consist of the elite few of John’s friends that Sherlock could actually tolerate arriving at precisely 5:30, followed by John coming home around 6:00 at which point he would be surprised to see his friends, and he would be especially delighted by how much effort Sherlock invested in the entire operation. 

Sherlock was extremely proud of the plan. Ordinarily he’d never even entertain the idea of such a dull evening, but John was worth it. John deserved it. Though, Sherlock couldn’t take all the credit for the party, his initial plan was to take John to see the museum at the Old Operating Theatre, but Mrs. Hudson advised against it telling Sherlock ‘it’s more what you would want to see, John may not be as eager.’ So he went with the much safer plan B of throwing an ordinary surprise party instead. 

Sherlock had been so preoccupied with his plan, he was startled when John came down to breakfast much later than usual on the day of his party.

“You’ve slept in.” Sherlock commented, “Aren’t you going to be late?”

“Good morning to you, too Sherlock. And thank you for the birthday wishes.” he said dryly. He took sat at the table across from Sherlock, and began to spread his favourite jam on the toast Mrs. Hudson had prepared that morning. “I’m guessing the complimentary breakfast is Mrs. Hudson’s gift then.”

“I suppose so. I’ve no idea why she bothers setting a place for me.” Sherlock remarked, pushing his full plate of various breakfast staples a little further away. “You still haven’t answered my question, though.”

“I told you last week, I’m taking the day off today to go see the meteor shower that’s happening later tonight. It’s a once in a lifetime chance and I don’t want to miss it.”

Of course, Sherlock thought, he did mention that. He mentioned it a lot actually. Stupid, stupid, stupid! That’s going to throw a wrench into everything!

“I still need to buy a decent telescope, though, so I’ll be doing that this morning.” John stated, and took a bite of his toast. “Would you care to join me in watching the meteor shower?”

Honestly? That was the last thing Sherlock wanted to do. Astronomy never interested him, and likely never would. But it was John’s birthday, and it’s what he wanted to do. 

“I’d love to.” Sherlock happily lied.

That gave Sherlock an idea. He hadn’t gotten John a gift yet, perhaps a telescope would be the best option. But not a cheap brand that John was likely to buy, no Sherlock would find the best damn telescope London could offer. Oh yes! This will be perfect, the party will just have to be set back a couple of hours, he and John will go view the meteor shower, and when they come back to the flat John will still have a proper surprise party.

Sherlock could get the telescope without John knowing, but the cake, that was more difficult. Sherlock couldn’t surprise John with a cake if John saw him making it. No, he still needed to get John out of the house…

“Before I forget,” Sherlock started, “can you go grocery shopping. We seem to be out of some kitchen staples again.” It’s an old excuse, yes, but it’s always worked before…

John sighed, “Alright, fine. But only because I’ve got the day off, and I’m in a good mood. So don’t spoil it.”

“When do I ever do that?” Sherlock smirked. “So we’ll go buy the telescope when you get back?”

“Yup.” he answered. 

John finished his breakfast and retreated back to his room. Sherlock took the time to call his closes confidante. 

“Yes, Sherlock?” she answered, used to his sporadic emergency calls by this time.

“I need your help, Molly.” he replied, keeping his voice down to a whisper.

“Did you set the flat on fire again?” she giggled.

“That was one time, Molly! No, I need you to meet John at the Tescos down the street from the flat, and distract him for the foreseeable future.”

“And how long is the foreseeable future?”

“I don’t know, three hours? Just enough time for me to bake a cake.”

Now Molly full on laughed at him, “You? Baking a cake? Sherlock, you can’t even make tea. How do you expect to make a cake without setting something on fire?”

“I’ve done experiments in the flat that are far more dangerous and far more complicated than baking a cake, and the flat is still unharmed…for the most part. Look, Mrs. Hudson is here if anything goes wrong, but I still intend to make his cake myself. I’ve got the recipe and ingredients all ready, I just need time. Will you help me?”

“Alright fine, I’ll be there soon. You’re lucky I’ve got someone to cover for me at the morgue, though!”

“Thank you Molly-” Sherlock had to cut his sentence short as John was coming down the stairs. He waved to Sherlock, and was out of the flat. “Alright, Molly. He just left.”

*****

About a month prior to John’s birthday, he and Sherlock had attended to a violin concert in Covent Garden and had dinner at Ladureé afterward. John had ordered their Charlotte Framboise and was instantly taken with it, claiming it to be the best cake he’d ever eaten. Sherlock had then, without John knowing, purchased their dessert cookbook for use in future events such as the one he was preparing for now.

The cookbook made it sound so easy, but then again that was the purpose of the cookbook; to convince the general public their extravagant recipes were nothing more than flour, sugar, eggs, and a few other ingredients mixed together in such a manner that anyone could do it!

Just 2 hours after John had left it was apparent to Sherlock he’d better stop before he destroyed the entire kitchen. With only an hour left before John would be home, Sherlock had to take drastic action.

“Hello, brother dear.” Mycroft answered, Sherlock just barely resisted the urge to hang up on him right then and there. But Sherlock, despite how much he hated it, needed his brother’s help. 

“Hello, Mycroft. I require your assistance.”

Mycroft laughed, “My goodness what event, other than perhaps the apocalypse, would require you to ask me for help?”

“It’s about John’s birthday. I’m trying to bake him a cake and I’ve already set the stove on fire twice, burnt the ladyfingers, and on top of it all the decorative rose for the top of the cake has wilted.” he let out a frustrated sigh, bringing himself to ask finally, “I know you have a strange knack for baking cakes, so could you please assist me in baking him a raspberry charlotte from the Ladureé cookbook?”

Mycroft continued laughing, “Oh yes, let me just squeeze ‘Bake John’s Birthday Cake to Make Sherlock’s Life Easier’ into my schedule for the day. How does between ‘Reviewing MI6 Missile Plans’ and ‘Assisting in United Nations Peace Delegations’ work for you?”

“So you’ll do it then?” Sherlock persisted.

“No Sherlock I’m busy!” he retorted, “Why don’t you you ask Mrs. Hudson to do it, or better still just buy the damn cake from their pastry shop.”

“No, I can’t!” Sherlock protested, “John’s coming back in an hour and there’s not enough time to bake it here. And I can’t go and buy it because I’m going with John to buy a telescope, well I’m going to buy a nicer one than he chooses as a gift, and I can’t just abandon him to buy a cake.”

“Well it sounds like you’re at a loss, brother dear. Give my best regards to John.”

“Goodbye, Mycroft.” Sherlock finished, and angrily hung up the phone.

“Yoo hoo!” Mrs. Hudson chimed from the doorway. “My goodness, Sherlock! What have you done to my kitchen?” In the blink of an eye, she had a wet rag in her hands and was fervently cleaning the mess Sherlock had made of the counters.

Sherlock collapsed into his leather chair in a huff, “I was attempting to bake John’s cake for his birthday. I’m embarrassed to say, I may have failed.”

“Oh, Sherlock that’s so sweet of you! John would love that so much!”

“Well now he’s going hate me!” he lamented, “I’ve completely marred the task! I’ve ruined his birthday!”

“Oh Sherlock, don’t be so melodramatic. Why don’t you let me help you? I’ve got some spare time, I’d be delighted to help.”

“No, I wanted to make it myself.”

Mrs. Hudson walked over to console the pouting Sherlock, “I’m sure he will be happy enough that you tried. I mean, you’ve never done anything like this before, so just start with small steps.”

“I suppose.” he sighed.

“Hey Sherlock!” John called from the entrance. Sherlock rose from the chair, and helped John with the bags while Mrs. Hudson continued to work on the kitchen. “Sorry I took so long, I met Molly at Tescos and she insisted we go out for coffee. You know, birthday wishes and all. How was your- Good God, Sherlock! What have you done to the kitchen?!”

Of course, he was bound to see the state of the kitchen, “Um…Experiments gone awry.” Sherlock stammered. Well, that wasn’t completely a lie. “Don’t worry, Mrs. Hudson has it covered.”

“Just remember, I’m not your housekeeper young man! I won’t always be here to rescue you from your big bad mess!” Mrs. Hudson scolded.

“Of course.” Sherlock nodded, “Now, John, we have a telescope to buy.”

“We also have to rent a car.” John added.

“What? Why?”

“There’s too much light pollution in the city. We need to drive out into the country to get a proper look at the shower.”

If there was anything Sherlock hated more than astronomy, it was rental cars and moderately long-distance driving. “Fine.” he grumbled. It’s John’s birthday, he reminded himself, do it for John.

“Great! Just let me finish putting away the groceries then we’ll go.”

*****

After a tedious afternoon, the telescope had been purchased (a luxurious Bresser EXOS-2) and the pair was driving to god knows where in their rented car. The sun was already beginning to set, soon they would be far enough away from the lights of the city to see the meteor shower. John calmly looked out the passenger window as Sherlock drove the car. 

“Thank you, Sherlock.” John said, “For everything. For coming with me, even though you don’t like astronomy, for buying me that expensive telescope-”

“That was supposed to be a surprise.” Sherlock interrupted.

“Oh please, I saw you talking to the man at the store.” John laughed, “But in all seriousness, I’m really thankful you’re here. I wanted to have a special day, just for us.”

Sherlock smiled, and in that moment he was at peace. A lot had gone wrong today, but seeing how happy John was with the simple things was remedy enough for the failures of the past. Sherlock looked to his left at John, how the sun was shining through his hair, illuminating every shimmer, every highlight. And his eyes, god he’d never taken the time to really look at John’s eyes. Comparing them to the sky, or the ocean, or even a sapphire could not accurately capture just how incredible they really were.

Sherlock was so caught up in every minute detail of John’s visage he didn’t hear John’s words of caution, nor did he notice the gas gauge slowly drop to empty.

“Oh god what’s happening?” Sherlock panicked as he was violently brought out of his daydream.

“Did you check the gas when we left?” John asked.

“I assumed the company filled it! Oh god I’ve ruined everything!”

“Sherlock we’ll be fine.” John giggled, “It’ll be fine. Getting back will be a bit more difficult, yes, but someone’s bound to drive by eventually. I mean, it’s a fairly popular road. And it’s far enough away to watch the meteor shower.”

“I would be so sure about that, look over there.” Sherlock gestured to the sky as dark clouds began to roll in, and large raindrops began to fall. “Looks like a nasty rainstorm to me, John. And it’ll take ages for someone to just happen to drive by, and we’ll be late for the party.”

“What party?”

“I was planning a surprise party for you. I even tried baking a cake, see the ‘experiment gone awry’. It was all going to go so well, and I’ve ruined everything.” Sherlock collapsed in an exasperated huff, and buried his head in his arms on the dashboard.

“Sherlock, that’s very nice of you, very thoughtful. Don’t get me wrong, it’s the kindest thing someone’s ever done, or attempted to do, for me. But truth be told, Sherlock, all I wanted for my birthday was to spend it with you.” Sherlock looked up at John and was met with a smile, he couldn’t help but smile back. Not when John looked at him like that. “Although, I did want to see the meteor shower, but I think I’ll get over that so long as you’re here.” John laughed, and Sherlock laughed along.

Yes, Sherlock was at peace. But something inside him wanted more, more than just friendly smiles and shared laughs. He’d felt this way many times since he met John, and always set it aside. He couldn’t this time. There was something about the way John stared at him, the way his eyes seemed to beckon Sherlock closer. He began to lean closer, and found that John welcomed his advance. 

Their lips met with just the slightest overlap, as if perfectly fitted for each other. John was hesitant at first, but as he closed his eyes he relaxed, leaning forward to eliminate the space between them, Sherlock could feel John relax into his arms. Sherlock closed his eyes, and ran his hands across John’s back, wanting to feel ever dip and curve of his bones. He felt John tangle his fingers through Sherlock’s hair, holding him closer still. Sherlock parted his lips just enough for John to slip his tongue between Sherlock’s teeth. It caught Sherlock off guard, he’d rarely done this with a woman let alone another man, but somehow he found he…enjoyed it. He found quite a lot of comfort in feeling John’s tongue tracing over his teeth and his lips and his own tongue…

Until John pulled back from Sherlock, sliding his hands away from where they had been tangled in his hair. Sherlock had no choice but to let go as well.

“I’m sorry, John.” He stuttered, their faces still closer than usual. “I’m sorry, I don’t know why I did that-” He was caught, it was over. He had no excuse for this mistake.

John quickly averted his gaze, “Don’t apologize.” he assured, “I’m sorry if I made you uncomfortable.”

“You weren’t making me uncomfortable.” 

John looked back at Sherlock, trying to read his expression but coming up short. If he ever wanted John to know, Sherlock was going to have to tell him himself, though it pained him to do so.

“John,” Sherlock began, “I’m not accustomed to anything akin to love or affection of this sort. I usually look down upon those who are, those who devote ever waking moment of their day to fantasies of their soulmate. That is, I have up until recently.” he took a deep breath before laying his heart upon his sleeve, “John, you’ve changed me in so many ways. Today has been evidence of that; I’ve never planned a social event for anyone, never attempted to bake a cake for anyone, never driven out into the middle of nowhere to look at the sky for a couple of hours for anyone. For anyone else, I would have been appalled, but for you…for you I feel a duty to do these things. To do whatever it takes to keep you happy, to do whatever it takes to keep you wanting me around. I’ve never felt a need to do that for anyone else, and if that’s what love is, I think I’ve found it with you. I apologize if I’ve made our relationship, whatever it is, more complicated now.”

Sherlock could tell John was searching for an answer. What would the proper response be to Sherlock’s spontaneous outburst of love?

The proper response was, according to John, more kissing. It was better the second time, if that was possible. John knew where to place his hands, just right, toying with the few locks at the nape of Sherlock’s neck. Sherlock felt more welcome the second time around, experimenting with how his own tongue played into the action. Sherlock breathed in. Took in the scent of John’s skin, his hair, everything about him, trying to create as many mental ties to this moment so he could store it away in his mind palace and remember it for years to come.

“Sherlock,” John sighed once he had again released Sherlock from his grasp, “That was the most gushy, most lovey-dovey thing I’ve ever heard you say. And I think it makes me love you all the more.”

Sherlock gave a sigh of relief, glad that, for now at least, John felt the same way he did.

“So, do you want to join our guests at some point tonight.” Sherlock asked.

“I’d rather just enjoy your gift for a little while longer.” John answered.

Sherlock looked at John, perplexed by his vague reply, “My gift?”

John gazed back at him, “Our first kiss. Which I’m hoping will have many more to follow.”

 

THE END

**Author's Note:**

> Not sure if it's apparent, but this is my first time writing fluff and kissing and stuff (if you've read my other works you're familiar I usually write angst). I might stick to angst after this, but the kissing I do like writing...
> 
> The ending is slightly inspired by the song Passenger Seat by Death Cab for Cutie (one of my favourite songs). I'd recommend giving it a listen, cause it's a really great song!


End file.
